Brhianna Dunbar: Yamba woman sentenced for affray over rampage outside Yamba’s The Mexican restaurant

A former SES volunteer lauded for helping northern NSW during the 2022 floods has faced court over a “reprehensible” and violent rampage which terrified a Clarence town.

A former Coraki SES worker who helped her community during the 2022 floods took part in a terrifying Yamba rampage alongside two other teenagers.

Brhianna Dunbar, 18 and co-offender Ezekiel Keleris, 19, have both been sentenced for their part in the frenzied attacks in the coastal town on September 24 last year – in which witnesses heard one teen scream: “This is my f--king town, we own this town”.

A 15-year-old boy has also faced court, accused of being the third teen involved, but he cannot legally be named due to his young age.

CCTV footage of the Yamba rampage.

In the rampage, an innocent man out for dinner was coward punched, golf clubs were swung at innocent people and a woman who tried to record information for authorities was punched and kicked to the ground, Grafton Local Court was told.

Dunbar faced the court on Monday, pleading guilty to affray – though her offending was deemed less serious than Keleris’.

Documents tendered to court lay out how Dunbar, Keleris and a third teen caused havoc in the usually sleepy Clarence Valley town.

The trio approached a popular Mexican restaurant on Coldstream St, The Mexican, pushing a trolley.

The Mexican restaurant in Yamba, where the rampage began.

They yelled at customers and staff, telling them they owned the town, according to the documents.

Keleris “king hit”, or coward punched, a man who had finished his meal and was leaving.

He fell to the ground and “all three (teens) began assaulting the victim by kicking and punching him”.

Keleris hurled chairs outside the restaurant and punched the victim in the face again, chipping his tooth and causing him to lose consciousness.

A cafe owner rushed to intervene, but he was repeatedly struck with a golf club and the teens shattered the glass door of his business.

A woman working at The Mexican tried to take a photo of number plates on a car the trio entered, but “she was confronted” and the teens “kicked and punched her to the ground”.

Brhianna Dunbar leaving Grafton Local Court with her lawyer.

“During the assault (the victim) had curled into a ball on the ground yelling for help whilst attempting to protect herself,” police facts state.

Police moved in and arrested the teens on Yamba St.

The court heard Dunbar played a far less serious role than Keleris, but Magistrate Roger Prowse still described her actions as “reprehensible”.

“You were there participating, egging them on … the way you behaved showed you were running amok,” he said.

Brhianna Dunbar (left) was visibly upset as she was sentenced for affray.

Defence lawyer John Kelly told the court Dunbar’s offending was “obviously incredibly serious”.

He said Dunbar – who previously lived in Coraki and volunteered for the SES during the 2022 floods – was forced to relocate to Yamba after the disasters, which took a toll on her mental health.

Mr Kelly said his client had stopped drinking alcohol since the rampage and started work at Yamba’s Pacific Hotel.

Mr Prowse spoke of the “two sides” of Dunbar: “On one side you’re horrible, the actions are horrible.”

“On the other side you’re a completely different person, you helped out the community (during the floods) … and you’re a hard worker – anyone who works in hospitality is a hard worker,” he said.

Dunbar was convicted and sentenced to a 21-month community correction order. She was also fined $1350.

It comes after Keleris received a 12-month prison sentence for his role. He pleaded guilty to three counts of assault occasioning actual bodily harm, four counts of malicious property damage, using an offensive weapon, affray and escaping police custody

On March 14, Keleris’ sentence was reduced to a 21-month intensive corrections order.